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THE NEXT HEADLINE

This past year will be bookmarked as a significant chapter in the 159-year Gustavus story. So many days have felt like significant markers, watershed moments to remember forever. This issue of the Gustavus Quarterly has reminded me of the importance of taking the long view. Over the course of a century, this college and its students have lived through incredible history, recorded through the eyes of Gustie students in The Gustavian Weekly. The publication has long been an institution on campus, a learning ground for democracy through the principles of the Fourth Estate and a culture meter for the times. It’s both campus watchdog and campus jester. And in addition to coverage and commentary around college life, students have written their way through our collective world history: wars, pandemics, natural disasters, contentious elections, and local, state, and international strife. And all while learning through the liberal arts. This year has been unlike any other in that COVID-19 disrupted our traditional methods of delivering a liberal arts education. Uncertainties and anxieties were universally present on campus. As we anticipated the rollout of vaccinations, we were faced with new questions—when would our community have the opportunity to be vaccinated? Would the distribution be fair and equitable? How will the next week, month, quarter affect our enrollment, our endowment, our approach for fall semester, our individual and collective health? Then I got out my reading glasses and perused the front page of the very first issue of The Gustavian Weekly (page 22). The right-hand column caught my eye: President Johnson gives address of welcome, expresses confidence in bigger year. The date? September 18, 1920. The 1918 influenza pandemic had just rounded its fourth and final wave around the world. The world was opening up again. Reading that century-old headline felt like peering into our hopeful future. My wish for the fall semester is that the student staff of The Gustavian Weekly opens with a similar sentiment, maybe a sentence that reads like this:

President Bergman welcomes all to campus with joy and confidence for a successful and fulfilling academic year. Let history show it to be true.

Yours in community,

Rebecca M. Bergman President, Gustavus Adolphus College

GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS COLLEGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

The Rev. Jon V. Anderson (ex officio), Bishop, Southwestern Minnesota Synod, ELCA Scott P. Anderson ’89, MBA (chair), Senior Advisor, TPG Capital Tracy L. Bahl ’84, MBA, President and Chief Executive Officer, OneOncology Grayce Belvedere-Young, MBA, Founder and CEO, Lily Pad Consulting Rebecca M. Bergman (ex officio), President, Gustavus Adolphus College Suzanne F. Boda ’82, Former Senior Vice President, Los Angeles, American Airlines Robert D. Brown, Jr. ’83, MA, MD, Staff Neurologist, Professor of Neurology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, and John T. and Lillian Matthews Professor of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic Kara K. Buckner ’97, Managing Director/Chief Strategy Officer, Fallon Worldwide Janette F. Concepcion, PhD, Clinical Psychologist, Concepcion Psychological Services Edward J. Drenttel ’81, JD, Attorney/Partner, Winthrop & Weinstine Bruce A. Edwards ’77, Retired CEO, DHL Global Supply Chain James H. Gale ’83, MA, JD, Attorney at Law John O. Hallberg ’79, MBA, Retired CEO, Children’s Cancer Research Fund

Susie B. Heim ’83, Former Co-owner, S and S Heim Construction

Mary Dee J. Hicks ’75, PhD, Retired Senior Vice President, Personnel Decisions International

The Rev. Alicia A. Hilding ’09, Co-Pastor, Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, New Prague, MN; President, Gustavus Adolphus College Association of Congregations The Rev. Peter C. Johnson ’92, Executive Pastor, St. Andrew Lutheran Church

Paul R. Koch ’87, Managing Director–Private Wealth Advisor, Senior Portfolio Manager, Koch Wealth Solutions, RBC Wealth Management Dennis A. Lind ’72, Chairman, Midwest Bank Group, Inc. Jan Lindman, MBA, Treasurer to the King, The Royal Court of Sweden The Rev. Dr. David J. Lose, Senior Pastor, Mount Olivet Lutheran Church

Gordon D. Mansergh ’84, MA, MEd, PhD, Senior Behavioral Scientist, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (serving in a personal capacity) and Past President, Gustavus Alumni Association

Mikka S. McCracken ’09, Executive Director for Innovation/Director, ELCA Leader Lab, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

Jan Ledin Michaletz ’74, Past President, Gustavus Alumni Association

Thomas J. Mielke ’80, JD, Retired Senior Vice President and General Counsel, Kimberly-Clark Corporation Bradley S. Nuss ’97, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Nuss Truck & Equipment Marcia L. Page ’82, MBA, Founding Partner, Värde Partners

The Rev. Dr. Dan. S. Poffenberger ’82, Senior Pastor, Shepherd of the Lake Lutheran Church Karl D. Self ’81, MBA, DDS, Associate Professor, University of Minnesota School of Dentistry The Rev. Heather Teune Wigdahl ’95, Senior Pastor, Our Savior’s Lutheran Church